Barreto

J. — Defendant was charged with the murder of his wife. A jury found him guilty of voluntary manslaughter, a lesser included offense. He appeals from the judgment of conviction and from the order denying his motion for new trial, contending that his confessions were inadmissible because made involuntarily and in violation of his right to counsel, and, further, that evidence used against him was obtained as the result of illegal searches. The body of the victim was never found and there were no eyewitnesses to the killing. Proof of the corpus delicti was by circumstantial evidence.

While no question is presented concerning the sufficiency of the evidence, to view the issues in proper perspective requires a summary of the facts.

Until 1964, defendant and the victim, Magdalena, lived in Colombia, South America. In that year they came with their child to live in the United States. In June of 1964, they moved to Los Angeles and lived in an apartment on South Vermont Avenue. In February 1965, Margarita Mora, a close friend of Magdalena, and also from Colombia, came to Los Angeles and moved in with them. On April 19, 1965, during an argument witnessed by Miss Mora, defendant struck…